Teaching Grammar: Professional Needs of Saudi EFL Instructors

Abstract

Grammar teaching has been a long tradition in EFL instruction in various parts of the world and Saudi Arabia is no exception to this. However, various approaches to teaching grammar have emerged over a period of time. For this, professional development (PD) programs are designed to meet the EFL teachers’ needs by enabling them to use a range of approaches and techniques. To do this successfully, professional needs analysis of teachers is essential. The present study investigates the beliefs of teachers regarding the use of various teaching approaches for grammar teaching and their need for professional development (PD). Questionnaire survey was conducted among 50 randomly chosen EFL teachers at a public sector university. The results showed that EFL teachers deem grammar as a foundational framework for teaching English as a foreign language. Furthermore, grammar is thought to be a major factor in developing accuracy and correct use of EFL. Moreover, the teachers have the theoretical knowledge of various grammar teaching methods using TBL, PBL and CLT. However, they need to develop practical skills for grammar instruction. Thus, the study recommends that the universities in Saudi Arabia need to arrange regular PD programs so that the EFL teachers with modern methods to teach English grammar successfully.